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Reviews by MichaelStoutBeard:

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Poures a deep orange with a nice creamy-like head that leaves a nice sheet of lace behind as it settles.Piney,resiney hop prevails aroma wise like a Pacific NW brew,flavors are awesome piney and sappy with a touch of citrus hop driven to say the least a touch of herbalness lends even more to the hops of this beer.There is a big slighty sweet backbone to this beer keeping it somewhat in balance but the hops make this beer stand out.A worthy 10th anniverary beer here big and hoppy with some character,I loved it.

Appearance  This was a beautiful, almost glowing orange in color with some nice carbonation and a sprawling foam head.

Smell  The hops here are gianormous! They are very complex. This is loaded with strong citrus notes and a forest of pine. The thick malt backbone is apparent even at the taste. The malts are lightly toasted but very thick.

Taste  The hops dont wimp out at the taste like a lot of DIPAs. They are a mouthful and coat the tooth enamel with slickly pine resin. The big caramel chunks explode in the back of the tongue. This is hop bomb meets malt bomb. Both flavors are so big its all they can do to keep up with each other, and they are perfectly balanced.

Mouthfeel  This is a big medium-bodied with an oily slick mouthfeel. Its almost too much to hold in between the cheeks.

Drinkability  The drinkability is low because everyone at skyhands Broken Fridge party wanted some  hahahaha! The few ounces I did get though were just explosive. What a great DIPA!

The Middle Ages 10th Anniversary pours from the bomber and into my tulip glass a deep opaque orange with a creamy inch of eggshell head on top. A rather thick pour as well. Aromas begin with a nice blast of citrusy hops upfront, apricot, orange and grapefruit with a bit of herbal, piney notes integrated as well. Sweet bready caramel underneath along with a smidge of butterscotch. From the smell alone I think this has held up well to some age.

First sip brings a sweet bready caramelized maltiness upfront followed by a burst of hoppy goodness. Big citric notes mix in with piney hop oils that rip across the palate with a brash bitterness. Mellow buttery notes are present as well. Goes down with a nice mix of sweet and bitter flavors. A bit of alcohol burn is present after each sip, just letting you know it's there. A tasty DIPA overall that sets istelf apart from others.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied with fast paced bubbles that race across the tongue. A bit dry and chalky as well. This one goes down pretty easily for being 10% alcohol. The bomber disappears easily enough, however the buttery notes coupled with the slightly dry chalkiness put me off. Cheers to Middle Ages for 10 years of brewing and thanks to blitheringidiot for the chance to sample this one.

Sampled from a growler, poured into a standard pint glass. Brilliant gold with a white head that, twenty minutes later, is still wispily there. Fruity aromas (maybe a bit of apricot, which may be a combo of the malts, yeast, and citric hop), mildly toasty malt, and faint alcohol greet the nose.

Mmmmm... Starts out with an alefruit (stole that term from Bryson, but it fits), light toast, and hop flavor that gently wraps the tongue, then the hops kick in with a seriously grapefruit rind and mild earthiness that grip the tongue like a vise. My tongue just loves this beer. Faint diacetyl, but IMO it only adds to the roundness of this brew - with this much hop, it combines nicely with the citrus to give all kinds of fruitiness and round out the flavor beautifully. 10 percent alcohol? WHERE??? I've had beers that were 7 percent that were hotter. There are mild warming vapors at the end which only serve to disperse the hop bitterness - yet there is still enough residual malt sweetness to keep things in balance. Finishes dryish, bitter, with hints of malty grains and grapefruit rind atop a friendly warmth. How drinkable? The growler was full not more than eight hours ago. There's now one pint left. An impressive brew by any measure.

Note to future reviewers: Thus far, two batched have been made. The first bacth, which is on tap and reviewed here, has less aroma and dry hopping (can you say Amarillo? I knew that you could) than the batch that was bottled. Yes, bottled. This brew has the malt and hop backbone, not to mention alcohol, to be aged for several years. Congratulations to the good folk at Middle Ages on 10 years and a damned fine brew to commemorate it - I hope to crack open one of these 10 years from now for their 20th.

Did I mention a cask or two of this exists? *cough* Memorial Day *cough* Tusk *cough* Friday. But you didn't hear it from me. &lt;g&gt;

T&M- Luscious & smooth and full bodied. A growing intensity of bitterness with each sip shows off a brash citric and herbal oily flavor. Hint of diacetyl gets lost in the mix, which is probably for the better. Big warming alcohol flails around with ripe fruit and a kiss of solvent flavor. Bready malt is thick enough to keep this beer balanced. Finishes with a long lingering herbal hop bitterness.

D- I love Double IPAs and this one certainly makes the mark, easy to drink @ 10% abv as well. Paired well with some sharp goat cheddar.

Bomber bottle, without freshness indication. Pours light copper, orangy amber, almost clear. With a near white head and leaving extensive and well developed lacing. Nose is of flowers and sticky pine. This is a quite hoppy tasty brew. Lots of pine, citrus, and oily hops. Crisp on the tongue, easy drinking, 10% very well hidden. Notes of oily, slick and floral hops.Buttery, smokey and vineous. This is a finely crafted and very enjoyable DIPA. I'd like to grab a few more bottles and put 'em away for a spell. Fine, fine brew from Middle ages.

Big thanks to Beerguy for this one...one of many fine brews from this brewery. Now in RI thanks to Frank at Diversified Imports.
Pours a beautiful cloudy, bright copper color with a full finger of bright white head...lacing is tight and has great cling to the side of my snifter glass.
Huge aromas of caramel, honey, citrus and no alcohol detected.
Taste is fruity bubblegum...a slight hint of alcohol, but not distracting. Not many can hide 10% alcohol, but they do a decent job of keeping it beneath everything else this brew has to offer.
A nice balance of sweetness and bitterness w/ a decent mouthfeel. The alcohol does make a bit more of an appearance as it warms up and the carbonation is a touch too high to keep me drinking this double beyond a bomber.
All in all a well made IIPA and one I would enjoy again.

Arrives a very hazy amber with a sticky two finger head of cream colored foam. The head looked like off-white shaving cream. Not much carbonation is evident. Fantastic lacing on the glass.

Aroma is strong grapefruit, lemons, and pine needles, with a nice toffee malt background. Alcohol is muted, but there. The smell is all about the hops.

This is one bitter beer. A dominating bitterness, followed by strong grapefruit and pine needles, a little caramel candy, and some alcohol. There actually is pretty much residual sugar in here, but it's overpowered by the bitterness. Aftertaste is long and bitter.

Mouthfeel is smooth with soft carbonation. There is a strong pinch at the back of your throat from hop bitterness. Very resiny on your tongue. Finish is lip-smacking sweet and bitter.

Did I tell you this is bitter? Slightly out of balance, and I love bitter beers. Still, it's a very good DIPA. Recommended.

Pours a respectable finger of creamy white head over a glowing orange body. Strong aromas of sweet and tart fruit, light pepper and earth as well as a good amount of citrus, herbal and floral hop character to boot. Sweet caramel malt upfront, but barely as it soon followed by a rush of citric hop flavor and its ensuing bitterness. Potent hop characterbut not too potent. A bit of a spicy character too, also probably from the hops. Body is lean to medium per style with moderate carbonation. Crisp in the mouth with a dry finish.

The hop character and bitterness is well done, as it is potent and dominates the beer, but does not completely singe your taste buds off (although it comes fairly close). Seems a tad on the lean side in terms of body despite its 10% ABV. Still a tasty beer with great hop complexity in the hop department.

Nice looking bright orange with a nice creamy dense head. Great retention and nice lace. A nice swirl brings out all the layers in the aroma. Nice oily ringwood yeast smell comes first followed by various yummy hops. Orange and lemon hops a hint of pine, some mellow sweet maltiness. Very pleasant and complex aroma. Taste has all of the above and then some. Nice bitter dry finish. Nicely warming too. Woah 10%. Now I notice after I inhale my beer.

Had on tap. I was trying to decide whether this was an Imperial IPA or an American Strong Ale with a lot of hops in the nose. I decided on Imperial IPA, and my suspicions were confirmed when I accessed the BA site.

Loads of hops, mostly Cascade, in the aroma. Pours with an immense head. After the head settles down, pleasant IPA/old ale taste, with warm rich malts and brisk sharp hoppiness. Finishes liquory, the only telltale sign that this beer comes in anywhere over 7%abv, a burning sugary lingering taste.

a very nice orange-hued amber color with a quickly-formed lacy-white head that dissipates pretty quick but has plenty of nice, smooth foam left over.

The hop scent is strawberries and cream, earthy yeatiness, sugar coated pineapple, vodka-like heat buzz on the nose at the end.

The hop flavor is dominated by fruitiness, with pineapple and sugar-covered grapefruit with a big, sharp vodka heat right of, this one does not waite until the end, it hits you right off, but is not offensive, just aggressive. The heat adds even more bitterness to the leafy-bitter finish but the malt is hefty enough to smooth things out and provide balance.

This one is medium bodied but very crispy and active, nit hard to drink.

Bomber into a Brooklyn tulip. So the deal is they and consumers loved it so much that they decided to go ahead and keep making it? I like initiative.

Appearance: Beautifully hazy a semi-murky looking copper-amber-golden color, with good head and spotty lacing doing its thing.

Smell: This is certainly a DIPA, but it seems like the balance is what they're focusing on the most. Nice fruit esters and leafy, grassy hops, along with some candy-like caramel-covered citrus rind. Balanced and aromatically complex from both sides.

Taste: Lots of things going on here. Nice strawberry and granny smith apple fruit esters. A bit of earthy caramel and doughiness. And a lot of assaulting, leafy, herbal, and grinding rind-esque hops. Yet it's balanced, and each tier of warming is more flavorful and complex than the next. Huge husk-like leafy hop bitter finish, with some sweetness backing it up. A pretty awesome, and slightly different, DIPA. There are too many that seem the same these days, and this one strays a bit.

Mouthfeel: Creamy and full-bodied with good carbonation. Not sugary or too thick in the least.

Drinkability: Another winner from Middle Ages, who I'm hoping to keep trying for years to come. Tasty, balanced, a bit visceral, and highly drinkable.

Got a huge head out of an average strength pour, nice and soapy, while the color is a light orange-shaded caramel/gold. Little patches of lace arise as the beer disappears.

Though huge hops are expected, I found a surprising amount of maltiness in the aroma too. The hops are there, nice and big too, but not spiking out as in many double IPAs.

When the beer finally hits the lips and tongue, it's pretty much all spotlights on the hops. Yet they're still super well-balanced. There's a nice oily slickness to the body, just perfect for the style. The hops keep on truckin', delivering a wonderful citrusy bitterness, while the malts make the experience fuller with a big robust sweetness. They're almost candy-like, and with the fresh, resiny hops, the great mouthfeel, and the superbly well-hidden alcohol, this one is very drinkable...maybe too drinkable, given the 10% ABV. A most excellent DIPA, and a great way to celebrate the 10th anniversary of this underrated brewery.

Damn good IPA. Very grapefruit aroma. Decent head orange colour with strong carbonation. Taste works great on IPA with grapefruit. More points if more creamy, but still eminently drinkable. Drying finish. Was nice on cask 14 months later at Clark's Ale House.
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Wow, the fruitiness and buttery note of the Ringwood yeast strain really combines well with the citrusy hops in this bright, beautiful, flavorful and exciting beer!

It pours a clear amber body with gleaming yellow highlights at the base of the glass, and a creamy, rocky head of ivory atop. The retention is quite good, and it initially leaves sheets of lace about the glass. Very nice!

The nose reveals all of the charms of the Ringwood yeast strain along with bright, citrusy (lots of lemon) hops; a branch of fresh-cut pine; and some delicately sweet malt.

In the mouth it's medium bodied and lightly crisp, but also kind of slick.

The flavor brandishes a long sword of sharply citrusy and piney hops right out of the box (there's some yeasty fruitiness in there as well), followed by a softening note of buttery diacetyl, sweet malt, and some more pine-like hops. Biscuity notes from the malt also appear in the finish, but otherwise this is all about hops and yeast with the malt simply acting as a trampoline for the act! It lingers in the finish with a solid bitterness that's peppered by some residual piney and citrusy hops, and just a mild touch of alcohol. In fact, for a beer of this strength (10%), it's remarkably well hidden!

I can't imagine a better beer for the guys to get together with after a warm holiday feast. Or as a quiet tipple on a cold winters night. In fact, I find this so "English" in character, that I might expect to stumble into a London pub one chill fall evening and find something exactly like this on tap. It's remarkable, to say the least, and possibly one of the best from Middle Ages! Worth seeking out!

This beer is not retired. It's now sold with a nearly identical label that says "Double India Pale Ale."

From a bottle that's been sitting in the cellar for a few months and has the old label. This is definately smoother than the draft version, but that's neither good nor bad. Pours a nice amber with fluffy white head. Smells quite fruity and tastes it. Starts with pineapple, before diving into pine and citrus. No big D apparent like in some Middle Ages brews, just lots of delicious hops without much malt flavor. Not the most complex DIPA, but pretty tasty and incredibly drinkable. 10% what? Give me another bomber.